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Published on May 4th, 2015 | by FloristtheBudew

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A Sea Slug Approach: VGC ’15 Gastrodon Analysis

When there is a Gastrodon in team preview, people often wonder what kind of role it is fulfilling. Is it an offensive Pokémon that will hit your Steel and Fire types hard with a super effective move? Or is it a bulky Water type Pokemon using its amazing ability Storm Drain? Gastrodon can fulfill many roles on a team and is flexible with how it performs. This analysis on the Water/Ground type sea slug will hopefully help you understand why and how you should use it.

What is a Gastrodon and what can it do?

Gastrodon is a Pokémon with Water/Ground typing. Most Water types are weak to Electric and Grass types, but with a Ground typing Gastrodon is immune to Electric-type attacks. However; this comes with the cost of having a 4x super effective weakness to Grass-type attacks. It has access to the ability Storm Drain, which makes it immune to Water-type attacks and gains a +1 boost to its Special Attack when targeted with one. Storm Drain can also redirect single-target Water-type attacks from anywhere on the field, which can be used to protect your team members! Gastrodon can provide great synergy support for your VGC team with Storm Drain, one weakness, and its attack coverage. While it is only able to hit 5 types for super effective damage with its Water and Ground attacks, having access to Ice-type attacks brings it’s range of type coverage to 8 types out of 18, nearly half of all Pokemon types. Gastrodon has the ability to hit many common Pokémon for super effective damage, such as Mega Mawile, Terrakion, Thundurus, Landorus-Therian and Mega Metagross.

An Analysis of Gastrodon’s Base Stats

Hit Points: 111
Attack: 83
Defense: 68
Special Attack: 92
Special Defense: 82
Speed: 39
Total: 475

Looking at the base stats, we can see that Gastrodon has excellent base hit points, but the rest of the stats are below average, with the only other notable stat being the special attack. It has a low base speed stat of 39, which is slow enough to be useful in Trick Room. With only having a Base Stat Total (BST) of 475, we can see Gastrodon is not used for its stats, but rather for its useful typing and ability.

How do you build a spread for Gastrodon?

Because Gastrodon has such a high base HP stat, investing more in your defenses can give Gastrodon more bulk. Depending on the team composition, you may want a spread more suited to the common bulky Water types; or perhaps you require a hard hitting Water/Ground type special attacker? Do you have an Intimidate user on your team?  Gastrodon, with its lackluster defense, can really strut its stuff when you patch that up. With a Modest nature, Gastrodon makes use of its best stat for a nature, as it gives the most efficient stat increase. While natures such as Bold/Relaxed or Calm/Sassy can work, they are generally for more niche roles as they are used for a specific purpose.

Why would I use Gastrodon over another bulky Water-type Pokemon?

Why would you use a Gastrodon over Pokémon like Suicune, Swampert (which has the same typing as Gastrodon), Rotom-Wash, or Politoed/Swift Swim users?

Gastrodon is used primarily for protecting members from single target Water-type moves, with team members benefiting directly from this such as Heatran (which also has a 4x resistance to Grass-type moves, which helps cover Gastrodon), Landorus-Therian, Arcanine, Terrakion and Mega Camerupt. Indirectly, Gastrodon can also help by covering types that are otherwise difficult for some popular Pokémon. Mega Salamence, Mega Metagross and Mega Mawile dislike fighting Steel types, with both the Steel Megas disliking Fire types as well. Gastrodon’s Water/Ground typing synergizes well as it can be built to KO said Pokemon that resist Salamence, Metagross, and Mawile.

Gastrodon checks Pokémon like Rotom-Wash, as the only way for Rotom-Wash to hurt Gastrodon is by having Will-O-Wisp, which may not even be seen on every set. It stops Suicune in its tracks other than a potental Snarl, but even then Suicune will not be exerting any pressure on Gastrodon.

Gastrodon, with enough offensive investment as shown in the EV spreads below, can get knock-outs on common Pokémon like Terrakion, Bisharp, Heatran, Mega Mawile and Mega Metagross with Earth Power. Thundurus, Zapdos, Landorus-T, Salamence and other Dragon/Flying types can be targeted with Ice-type attacks such as Ice Beam or Icy Wind.  Gastrodon can also use Water-type moves such as Muddy Water or Scald to get knock-outs on Rotom-Heat, Arcanine, Blaziken, Volcarona and Chandelure.

Gastrodon has a few useful moves, such as: Muddy Water, Scald, Earth Power, Ice Beam, Icy Wind, Sludge Bomb, Recover and Mirror Coat, with the first 5 moves being the most common for a balance between offense and defense. Muddy Water can be used as a good spread move, but it has a shaky accuracy of 85%, so it should only be used if a more accurate Water-type attack is not a necessity. Recover is more effectively used in a Trick Room scenario where it can move before the opponent’s Pokémon and able to recover health. Mirror Coat should only be considered for an Assault Vest variant, which is an extremely niche set for Gastrodon.

What does Gastrodon need to be wary of?

Gastrodon needs to be wary of most Grass types, as most common Grass-type attacks can knock it out. A small amount of defensive investment can make Giga Drain a two-hit KO from Amoongus.

• 0 SpA Amoonguss Giga Drain vs. 180 HP / 0 SpD Gastrodon: 172-208 (82.2 – 99.5%) — guaranteed 2HKO

Gastrodon does not like to be hit with Snarls due to its mediocre special attack or heavy hitting physical moves such as Mega Kangaskhan’s Return/Double-Edge, as it heavily damages Gastrodon. Gastrodon dislikes being burned, but if it has Recover the issue can be slightly negated.

Sample Gastrodon Spreads

Offensive Gastrodon

Gastrodon @ Expert Belt
Ability: Storm Drain
Level: 50
EVs: 204 HP / 100 Def / 196 SpA / 8 SpD
Modest Nature
IVs: 27 Spe
– Earth Power
– Ice Beam
– Scald
– Protect

Offensive Calculations

• 196+ SpA Expert Belt Gastrodon Earth Power vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Terrakion: 168-202 (100.5 – 120.9%) — guaranteed OHKO
• 196+ SpA Expert Belt Gastrodon Ice Beam vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Mega Salamence: 226-269 (132.1 – 157.3%) — guaranteed OHKO
• 196+ SpA Expert Belt Gastrodon Earth Power vs. 252 HP / 0 SpD Aegislash-Blade: 262-310 (156.8 – 185.6%) — guaranteed OHKO
• 196+ SpA Expert Belt Gastrodon Ice Beam vs. 36 HP / 4 SpD Landorus-T: 245-288 (144.9 – 170.4%) — guaranteed OHKO
• 196+ SpA Expert Belt Gastrodon Earth Power vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Mega Metagross: 139-168 (89.1 – 107.6%) — 43.8% chance to OHKO
• 196+ SpA Expert Belt Gastrodon Earth Power vs. 252 HP / 4 SpD Mega Mawile: 161-190 (102.5 – 121%) — guaranteed OHKO

Defensive Calculations

• 252 Atk Terrakion Close Combat vs. 204 HP / 100 Def Gastrodon: 121-144 (57 – 67.9%) — guaranteed 2HKO
• 252+ Atk Aerilate Mega Salamence Double-Edge vs. 204 HP / 100 Def Gastrodon: 187-222 (88.2 – 104.7%) — 31.3% chance to OHKO
• 252+ SpA Aegislash-Blade Shadow Ball vs. 204 HP / 8 SpD Gastrodon: 97-115 (45.7 – 54.2%) — 50% chance to 2HKO
• 252+ Atk Landorus-T Earthquake vs. 204 HP / 100 Def Gastrodon: 91-108 (42.9 – 50.9%) — 2.3% chance to 2HKO
• 252 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Zen Headbutt vs. 204 HP / 100 Def Gastrodon: 117-138 (55.1 – 65%) — guaranteed 2HKO
• 252+ Atk Huge Power Mega Mawile Play Rough vs. 204 HP / 100 Def Gastrodon: 172-204 (81.1 – 96.2%) — guaranteed 2HKO

This is Simon Yip’s (Simon) spread who used Gastrodon successfully in a Premier Challenge. That report can be found here.

The team was composed of physical Mega Salamence, which struggles against Pokémon who resist its Aerilate boosted Flying-type attacks and Pokémon such as Mega Mawile, Aegislash, Zapdos and Mega Metagross. Simon also wanted to use a Landorus-Therian or a Terrakion in his team, but due to conflicting weaknesses, Terrakion was chosen over Landorus-T. These two are still unable to hit some Steel types such as Aegislash though. He used a Drought Ninetales that gave him some added coverage, but he needed more than one Pokémon that could hit certain threats hard in order to have a reliable team counter. This is when Gastrodon was selected for the team. Simon wanted to hit Aegislash in its Blade-form, where it is most vulnerable. Having 196 special attack EV’s with Modest nature and a speed IV of 27 enables it to under speed and KO Aegislash with Earth Power. It also can Knock out 36 Hp / 4 SpD Landorus-T, 4 Hp Mega Salamence, and 4 Hp Terrakion with Ice Beam and Earth Power respectively. This is an example of how Gastrodon can be used to fulfill an offensive role in a team. Having a special Ground-type is extremely useful in the 2015 VGC Meta game as it gets many KOs on common Pokémon highlighted before.

Supportive Gastrodon

Gastrodon @ Sitrus Berry
Ability: Storm Drain
Level: 50
EVs: 148 HP / 164 Def / 100 SpA / 96 SpD
Quiet Nature
IVs: 0 Spe
– Scald
– Earth Power
– Ice Beam
– Protect

This is my own Gastrodon spread, which was made for supporting a team rather than being a major offensive threat. It fulfilled multiple roles in my team. I used Mega Metagross, Arcanine, Gastrodon, Hydreigon, Zapdos, and Terrakion. As you can see, a bit of my team dislikes taking Scalds as Mega Metagross can get burnt, Terrakion can be brought down to its Focus Sash, and Arcanine getting hit for a lot of damage. Arcanine’s Intimidate helped Gastrodon a lot and helped check Grass types that Gastrodon needs help dealing with. The spread was built to tank Salamence’s 252 Adamant Aerilate Double-Edge, and fire back with Ice Beam. The Quiet nature helped out my team against Trick Room teams, and the reduced speed does not impact it in any other match other than against Trick Room. The remainder of the EVs were placed into special defense.

Offensive Calculations

• 100+ SpA Gastrodon Ice Beam vs. 36 HP / 4 SpD Landorus-T: 184-220 (108.8 – 130.1%) — guaranteed OHKO
• 100+ SpA Gastrodon Ice Beam vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Mega Salamence: 172-204 (100.5 – 119.2%) — guaranteed OHKO
• 100+ SpA Gastrodon Earth Power vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Terrakion: 128-152 (76.6 – 91%) — guaranteed 2HKO
• 100+ SpA Gastrodon Earth Power vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Mega Metagross: 108-128 (69.2 – 82%) — guaranteed 2HKO
• 100+ SpA Gastrodon Earth Power vs. 252 HP / 124 SpD Mega Mawile: 108-128 (68.7 – 81.5%) — guaranteed 2HKO

Defensive Calculations

• 252+ Atk Landorus-T Earthquake vs. 148 HP / 164 Def Gastrodon: 84-100 (40.9 – 48.7%) — 99.7% chance to 3HKO after Sitrus Berry recovery
• 252+ Atk Aerilate Mega Salamence Double-Edge vs. 148 HP / 164 Def Gastrodon: 175-207 (85.3 – 100.9%) — guaranteed 2HKO after Sitrus Berry recovery
• 252 Atk Terrakion Close Combat vs. 148 HP / 164 Def Gastrodon: 112-133 (54.6 – 64.8%) — 14.1% chance to 2HKO after Sitrus Berry recovery
• 252+ Atk Huge Power Mega Mawile Play Rough vs. 148 HP / 164 Def Gastrodon: 160-189 (78 – 92.1%) — guaranteed 2HKO after Sitrus Berry recovery
• 252 Atk Tough Claws Mega Metagross Zen Headbutt vs. 148 HP / 164 Def Gastrodon: 109-129 (53.1 – 62.9%) — 1.2% chance to 2HKO after Sitrus Berry recovery

Defensive Gastrodon

Gastrodon @ Rocky Helmet
Ability: Storm Drain
Level: 50
EVs: 228 HP / 164 Def / 116 SpD
Calm Nature
IVs: 27 Spe
– Earth Power
– Ice Beam
– Recover
– Protect

This Gastrodon is built to be bulky, trying to prolong its time on the field in order to make use of its ability. The HP number minimizes burn damage. The EV spread takes Adamant 252 Attack Double-Edge from Mega Kangaskhan and Choice Specs Hydreigon’s Draco Meteor. This spread takes nearly any neutral attack, which helps Gastrodon in supporting the team. Rocky Helmet punishes physical attackers, which could potentially help teammates KO opposing Pokémon. The moves are a standard defensive set, with Earth Power dealing decent damage and Ice Beam for hitting Pokemon 4x weak to it. Recover can be used effectively due to the bulk on Gastrodon in prolonging its time on the field. Protect also helps with the goal of keeping Gastrodon on the field

Offensive

• 0 SpA Gastrodon Earth Power vs. 252 HP / 156 SpD Aegislash-Blade: 128-152 (76.6 – 91%) — guaranteed 2HKO
• 0 SpA Gastrodon Earth Power vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Bisharp: 128-152 (90.7 – 107.8%) — 37.5% chance to OHKO
• 0 SpA Gastrodon Ice Beam vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Mega Salamence: 140-168 (81.8 – 98.2%) — guaranteed 2HKO
• 0 SpA Gastrodon Earth Power vs. 4 HP / 0 SpD Terrakion: 104-126 (62.2 – 75.4%) — guaranteed 2HKO
• 0 SpA Gastrodon Ice Beam vs. 44 HP / 0 SpD Landorus-T: 156-184 (91.7 – 108.2%) — 43.8% chance to OHKO

Defensive

• 252+ Atk Parental Bond Mega Kangaskhan Double-Edge vs. 228 HP / 164 Def Gastrodon: 180-214 (83.7 – 99.5%) — guaranteed 2HKO
• 252+ SpA Choice Specs Hydreigon Draco Meteor vs. 228 HP / 116+ SpD Gastrodon: 168-198 (78.1 – 92%) — guaranteed 2HKO
• 252+ Atk Aerilate Mega Salamence Double-Edge vs. 228 HP / 164 Def Gastrodon: 175-207 (81.3 – 96.2%) — guaranteed 2HKO
• 252+ Atk Life Orb Bisharp Knock Off vs. 228 HP / 164 Def Gastrodon: 86-101 (40 – 46.9%) — guaranteed 3HKO (Noting that knock off loses power after the first hit).
• 252+ SpA Aegislash-Blade Shadow Ball vs. 228 HP / 116+ SpD Gastrodon: 79-94 (36.7 – 43.7%) — guaranteed 3HKO

Items that Gastrodon Uses

Gastrodon can use the following items effectively:

• Expert Belt
• Sitrus Berry
• Rocky Helmet
• Assault Vest
• Leftovers
• Rindo Berry

While the items are in no specific order, Gastrodon usually runs Expert Belt, Leftovers, Sitrus Berry or Rocky Helmet. What it uses for you is dependent on what role your Gastrodon will fulfill. Sitrus Berry, Leftovers and Rocky Helmet are used for the more supportive roles, whereas the Expert Belt focuses more on its offensive Ground typing. Assault Vest is a very niche set, but can potentially be used with Mirror Coat to knock out Pokemon who hit it hard on the special spectrum such as a Mega Venasaur’s Giga Drain. This is best used in Best of One as once revealed in a Best of Three, it can be more of a hindrance due to the lack of surprise factor.

Who should I use on my team with Gastrodon?

Gastrodon has good synergy with Heatran, Talonflame, and Volcarona as they quad-resist Grass-type attacks and Gastrodon can redirect Water-type moves away from them. Talonflame in particular pairs especially well with Gastrodon as both Pokemon are either immune or resistant to each other’s weaknesses. Gastrodon can take out many Pokemon that threaten Talonflame, and likewise with Talonflame quickly eliminating opposing Grass types using Brave Bird. Heatran has good synergy with Gastrodon as well, but Gastrodon tends to take a lot of damage when facing Ground/Fighting types before it can KO them.

Volcarona is an interesting choice as it can hit Grass types very hard with both Bug Buzz and it’s array of Fire-type moves. However; Gastrodon does not have a flying resistance meaning that opposing Talonflame and Mega Salamance can hit both of them for a lot of damage.

A Mega Evolution that appreciates being paired with a Storm Drain user is Mega Camerupt, as it has a 4x weakness to water. Gastrodon can take out Landorus-Therian as well, as Landorus is a good check for both Gastrodon and Camerupt. However; other than that, there is not much Gastrodon can help Camerupt with. The shared Ground typing on both is redundant, with neither one helping each other with their weaknesses.

Mega Salamence and Mega Metagross enjoy being paired with Gastrodon as it can redirect potential burns from Scald.  Terrakion can partner with Gastrodon well as it can take out hard hitting physical Pokemon for Gastrodon, and Gastrodon can support Terrakion with Storm Drain as well as take out potential threats such as Mega Salamence.

I hope this analysis has given you an insight on why you would consider Gastrodon for your VGC 2015 team.

Credit to Simon and Angel Miranda (CT MikotaMisaka) for both helping me with the offensive team spread and their own short reports on the team.
​Credit to Stats‘ Pokémon Attack Survival Calculator as it helped with making the last spread.
Credit to P3DS and his idea of an Assault Vest Gastrodon.

About the Author

FloristtheBudew Hi there. My name is Brendan Webb, over wise known as FloristtheBudew. My hobbies range from Pokemon battling in the VGC format, drawing digital art and living on the Nugget Bridge Forum. I decided to no longer continue my engineering degree, with myself pondering my career and what to pursue. For the time being I will just under take adult education courses until something catches my fancy.

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